Kokatat Icon Drysuit - Rear Entry Zip

Kokatat Icon Drysuit - Rear Entry Zip

$ 1,175.00 USD

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Brief Description

The Gore-tex® Icon drysuit from Kokatat combines all the best river kayak dry suit features. Rear entry dry suits have made a bit of a comeback among certain whitewater kayakers.

There are two advantages of the rear entry zipper for river kayakers, it eliminates the need for an opening in the overskirt and for comfort over the chest. Front entry dry suits with overskirts have to have a way to pass the zipper through the overskirt, and even with a flap closure over this opening a trickle of water can get into the kayak if you are cartwheeling, rolling, etc. all day. For most river kayakers the leakage, if noticeable at all, is small enough to ignore. But if you are competing at freestyle it may be worth the using a rear entry suit.

Detailed Description

With a front entry suit, you can get in and out of it by yourself - without the risk of breaking the zipper. With rear entry dry suits, it is best to get a friend to help you zip and unzip your suit. There are tricks for opening and closing a rear entry zipper by yourself. One trick is hooking a strap from the zipper pull to the roof rack on your car or a tree branch and then walking sideways to move the zipper. Or, if you are flexible enough you may be able to reach behind your head to work the zipper yourself. The trouble with all these tricks is that besides being awkward and tricky to do, you still run a serious risk of breaking your zipper. A broken zipper can ruin your day, and it will take a month or two plus a couple of hundred dollars to get it fixed.

Specs

The torso is made of the same 3.21oz 3-layer Gore-Tex Evolution fabric Kokatat builds their other Gore-Tex drysuits with.

The bottom half of the Icon dry suit is made of a special Cordura® Gore-Tex which has the highest abrasion resistance of any waterproof/breathable fabric.

The shoulders and sleeves are made of Cordura Gore-Tex and the

Cordura Gore-Tex in the high wear areas makes the Kokatat Icon and Idol style suits the most durable whitewater dry suits ever.

Relief Zipper (covered with a zipper flap so it is hard to see in the photo)